--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: There are lone figures armed only with…" description: "\"There are lone figures armed only with ideas, sometimes with just one idea, who blast away whole epochs in which we are enwrapped like mummies. Some ar..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbb/henry-miller-179_blast_there-are-lone-figures-armed-only-with-i_1866596.jpg" --- # There are lone figures armed only with ideas, sometimes… ![“There are lone figures armed only with ideas, sometimes with just one idea, who blast away whole epochs in which we are enwrapped like mummies. Some are powerful enough to resurrect the dead. Some steal on us unawares and put a spell over us which it takes centuries to throw off. Some put a curse…” quote by Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbb/henry-miller-179_blast_there-are-lone-figures-armed-only-with-i_1866596.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbb/henry-miller-179_blast_there-are-lone-figures-armed-only-with-i_1866596.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbb/henry-miller-179_blast_there-are-lone-figures-armed-only-with-i_1866596.jpg) > “There are lone figures armed only with ideas, sometimes with just one idea, who blast away whole epochs in which we are enwrapped like mummies. Some are powerful enough to resurrect the dead. Some steal on us unawares and put a spell over us which it takes centuries to throw off. Some put a curse on us, for our stupidity and inertia, and then it seems as if God himself were unable to lift it.” [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Ideas can be powerful enough to reshape history, for change, and to bind societies in long‑lasting influence. **In simple terms:** Ideas can change eras and bind us. Key Takeaway Recognize and challenge powerful ideas. Themes ideas history influence power change Mood thoughtful critical inspirational Type philosophical observational analytical When to use this quote - political movements - technological revolutions - social reforms - artistic renaissances Key Concepts philosophy cultural dynamics psychology Questions to Reflect On - What ideas have shaped your worldview? - How can we guard against harmful ideas? A Different Perspective Ideas can also be misused, leading to oppression or stagnation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Curse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/curse/) [Ideas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ideas/) [Inertia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inertia/) [Vision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vision/) ## Related quotes > [He believed in God even if he was doubtful of men's claims to know God's mind. But that a God unable to forgive was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cormac-mccarthy/he-believed-in-god-even-if-he-was-doubtful-of-men-s-claims-to-know/) [Cormac McCarthy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cormac-mccarthy/) > [“If any human concious able to define the God then he exactly don't know about the God. If willing to describe then he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kunal-jajal/if-any-human-concious-able-to-define-the-god-then-he-exactly-don-t/) [kunal jajal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kunal-jajal/) > [I'm a proper mummy's boy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shayne-ward/i-m-a-proper-mummy-s-boy/) [Shayne Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shayne-ward/) > [Mummy weighed sweets and nuts so that everyone would get exactly the same amount. During the year, everything is measured roughly, but at Christmas,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tove-jansson/mummy-weighed-sweets-and-nuts-so-that-everyone-would-get-exactly-the/) [Tove Jansson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tove-jansson/) > [“No, Miss,' he said. 'I told you. It's not her name. It's her number. It's mummy's special number.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-ward/no-miss-he-said-i-told-you-it-s-not-her-name-it-s-her-number-it-s/) [Rachel Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-ward/) > [To me, a yummy mummy is a mum in her twenties, like Donna Air.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trinny-woodall/to-me-a-yummy-mummy-is-a-mum-in-her-twenties-like-donna-air/) [Trinny Woodall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trinny-woodall/) > [With 'The Mummy' it was a fantasy action adventure. You get taken away for a few hours and come out and feel revamped and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-ford/with-the-mummy-it-was-a-fantasy-action-adventure-you-get-taken-away/) [Luke Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-ford/) > [When Mummy and Daddy were on the road all the time, they were workin'. I didn't see them really take a day off.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cedella-marley/when-mummy-and-daddy-were-on-the-road-all-the-time-they-were-workin-i/) [Cedella Marley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cedella-marley/) > [Love is when mummy gives the best piece of chicken to daddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miley/love-is-when-mummy-gives-the-best-piece-of-chicken-to-daddy/) [Miley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miley/) > [I'm excited about turning 40. I've been an adult for a long time, but there is a difference between being an adult and being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jill-scott/i-m-excited-about-turning-40-i-ve-been-an-adult-for-a-long-time-but/) [Jill Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jill-scott/) > [Darling Daddy, This is Rose. The shed needs new wires now it has blown up. Caddy is bringing home rock-bottom boyfriends to see if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hilary-mckay/darling-daddy-this-is-rose-the-shed-needs-new-wires-now-it-has-blown/) [Hilary McKay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hilary-mckay/) > [“In some warped way, having an embalmed body with us made perfect sense.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tahir-shah/in-some-warped-way-having-an-embalmed-body-with-us-made-perfect-sense/) [Tahir Shah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tahir-shah/) > [Mark how fleeting and paltry is the estate of man-yesterday in embryo, tomorrow a mummy or ashes. So for the hairsbreadth of time assigned…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/mark-how-fleeting-and-paltry-is-the-estate-of-man-yesterday-in-embryo/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [You can't change a man, no-ways. By the time his mummy turns him loose and he takes up with some innocent woman and marries…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marjorie-kinnan-rawlings/you-can-t-change-a-man-no-ways-by-the-time-his-mummy-turns-him-loose/) [Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marjorie-kinnan-rawlings/) > [Designers shouldn’t design for museums any more than mummies should die for them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-caplan/designers-shouldn-t-design-for-museums-any-more-than-mummies-should/) [Ralph Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-caplan/) ## More by Henry Miller > [“I reached out for something to attach myself to—and I found nothing. But in reaching out, in the effort to grasp, to attach myself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/i-reached-out-for-something-to-attach-myself-to-and-i-found-nothing/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“I saw the errors I had made and assumed full responsibility for everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/i-saw-the-errors-i-had-made-and-assumed-full-responsibility-for/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [The monstrous thing is not that men have created roses out of this dung heap, but that, for some reason or other, they should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/the-monstrous-thing-is-not-that-men-have-created-roses-out-of-this/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [They never opened the door which leads to the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/they-never-opened-the-door-which-leads-to-the-soul/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“(...)I decided to let myself drift with the tide, to make not the least resistance to fate, no matter in what form it presented…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/i-decided-to-let-myself-drift-with-the-tide-to-make-not-the-least/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“If it be knowledge or wisdom one is seeking, then one had better go direct to the source. And the source is not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/if-it-be-knowledge-or-wisdom-one-is-seeking-then-one-had-better-go/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“In the egocentric prism the helpless victim is walled in by the very light which he refracts. The ego dies in its own glass…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/in-the-egocentric-prism-the-helpless-victim-is-walled-in-by-the-very/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“When one spends what he has on himself, when one has a thoroughly good time with his own money, people are apt to say…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/when-one-spends-what-he-has-on-himself-when-one-has-a-thoroughly-good/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [Paint what you like and die happy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/paint-what-you-like-and-die-happy/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [She may be lying in bed reading a book, she may be making love with a prize fighter, or she may be running like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/she-may-be-lying-in-bed-reading-a-book-she-may-be-making-love-with-a/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“And no one sets about saving the world unless he has first experienced the miracle of personal salvation.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/and-no-one-sets-about-saving-the-world-unless-he-has-first/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“He looks about the room at the few sticks of furniture, at the dirty bed sheets and the wash basin with the dirty water…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/he-looks-about-the-room-at-the-few-sticks-of-furniture-at-the-dirty/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“Since then, of course, I have discovered what every madman in Paris discovers sooner of later; that there are no ready made infernos for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/since-then-of-course-i-have-discovered-what-every-madman-in-paris/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“Looking back upon my career, I see myself as a person capable of undertaking almost any task, any vocation. It was the monotony and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/looking-back-upon-my-career-i-see-myself-as-a-person-capable-of/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) > [“The word in your mouth is anarchy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/the-word-in-your-mouth-is-anarchy/) [Henry Miller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) [Explore all 894 Henry Miller quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/) ## More Blast quotes > [Singing is a f\*\*\*ing blast. When it’s really good, it’s as good as the best sex. I get nipple erections all the time on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-osborne/singing-is-a-f-ing-blast-when-it-s-really-good-it-s-as-good-as-the/) [Joan Osborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-osborne/) > ['Bengal Tiger' is huge film for me, and I had a blast working with both Ravi Teja and Tamannaah.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raashi-khanna/bengal-tiger-is-huge-film-for-me-and-i-had-a-blast-working-with-both/) [Raashi Khanna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raashi-khanna/) > [CGI has fully ruined car crashes. Because how can you be impressed with them now? When you watch them in the '70s, it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/quentin-tarantino/cgi-has-fully-ruined-car-crashes-because-how-can-you-be-impressed/) [Quentin Tarantino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-tarantino/) > [You can say that a small attack is one in which relatively few people die, but the minute you say that, you can sense…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karan-mahajan/you-can-say-that-a-small-attack-is-one-in-which-relatively-few-people/) [Karan Mahajan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karan-mahajan/) > [He must be independent and brave, and sure of himself and of the importance of his work, because if he isn't he will never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-e-sherwood/he-must-be-independent-and-brave-and-sure-of-himself-and-of-the/) [Robert E. Sherwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-e-sherwood/) > [I think it's funny. There was a time when men were afraid that somebody would reveal some secret of theirs that was unknown to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayn-rand/i-think-it-s-funny-there-was-a-time-when-men-were-afraid-that/) [Ayn Rand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayn-rand/) > [I could easily blast so much keef night and day I become a bouhali; a real-gone crazy, a holy untouchable madman unto whom everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brion-gysin/i-could-easily-blast-so-much-keef-night-and-day-i-become-a-bouhali-a/) [Brion Gysin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brion-gysin/) > [I usually write in my underwear, with a space heater running full blast, and three dogs sleeping at me feet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-evison/i-usually-write-in-my-underwear-with-a-space-heater-running-full/) [Jonathan Evison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-evison/) > [Capricious, wanton, bold, and brutal Lust Is meanly selfish; when resisted, cruel; And, like the blast of Pestilential Winds, Taints the sweet bloom of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/capricious-wanton-bold-and-brutal-lust-is-meanly-selfish-when/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [I wanted to deconstruct the puppet show. I wanted to turn it inside out and do stuff that you're not supposed to do. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-white/i-wanted-to-deconstruct-the-puppet-show-i-wanted-to-turn-it-inside/) [Wayne White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-white/) > [The scent organ was playing a delightfully refreshing Herbal Capriccio - rippling arpeggios of thyme and lavender, of rosemary, basil, myrtle, tarragon; a series…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/the-scent-organ-was-playing-a-delightfully-refreshing-herbal/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [Without challenges, the human body will soften. We thrive when we push our boundaries, reach goals, and blast personal records. We perform better, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-john/without-challenges-the-human-body-will-soften-we-thrive-when-we-push/) [Dan John](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-john/) > [If you allow one single germ, one single seed of slavery to remain in the soil of America... that germ will spring up, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernestine-rose/if-you-allow-one-single-germ-one-single-seed-of-slavery-to-remain-in/) [Ernestine Rose](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernestine-rose/) > [Whither away, Bluebird, Whither away? The blast is chill, yet in the upper sky Thou still canst find the color of thy wing, The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-clarence-stedman/whither-away-bluebird-whither-away-the-blast-is-chill-yet-in-the/) [Edmund Clarence Stedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-clarence-stedman/) > [With this blistering salvo of poetic gutshots Lawson has proven himself Bizarro’s true bard, its mad laureate. Switching from dark whimsy to retina-blast shock…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-robert-johnson/with-this-blistering-salvo-of-poetic-gutshots-lawson-has-proven/) [Jeremy Robert Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-robert-johnson/) Browse all 437 Blast quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "There are lone figures armed only with ideas, sometimes with just one idea, who blast away whole epochs in which we are enwrapped like mummies. Some are powerful enough to resurrect the dead. Some steal on us unawares and put a spell over us which it takes centuries to throw off. Some put a curse on us, for our stupidity and inertia, and then it seems as if God himself were unable to lift it.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Henry Miller" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/there-are-lone-figures-armed-only-with-ideas-sometimes-with-just-one/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Blast" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/there-are-lone-figures-armed-only-with-ideas-sometimes-with-just-one/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbb/henry-miller-179_blast_there-are-lone-figures-armed-only-with-i_1866596.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbb/henry-miller-179_blast_there-are-lone-figures-armed-only-with-i_1866596.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fbb/henry-miller-179_blast_there-are-lone-figures-armed-only-with-i_1866596.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“There are lone figures armed only with ideas, sometimes with just one idea, who blast away whole epochs in…” — Henry Miller", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Henry Miller", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-miller/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "There are lone figures armed only...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/there-are-lone-figures-armed-only-with-ideas-sometimes-with-just-one/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-miller/there-are-lone-figures-armed-only-with-ideas-sometimes-with-just-one/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```